Results.
56 judgments found.
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| April 2026 |
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Use of the wrong prescribed notice form nullified the appeal; absence of a memorandum meant no competent appeal existed.
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Civil procedure
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— Appeals from subordinate court to High Court — Notice of appeal — Prescribed Form 26 mandatory; use of Supreme Court of Appeal form invalidates appeal
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— Record of appeal — Memorandum of appeal (grounds) integral to record of appeal; absence means no appeal
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— Procedural irregularity — Fundamental defects in prescribed form cannot be cured by inherent jurisdiction or Order 2 relief
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14 April 2026 |
| February 2026 |
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27 February 2026 |
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20 February 2026 |
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An Ombudsman may investigate anonymous whistle‑blower complaints and lawfully construe statutory qualification requirements in recruitment.
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Ombudsman jurisdiction — anonymous complaints and whistle‑blower protection (s12A); maladministration in public recruitment; statutory interpretation of qualifications (s6(5) Corrupt Practices Act); separation of powers and administrative oversight.
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16 February 2026 |
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Whether the Chief Secretary lawfully seconded senior military officers — judicial review, s43 fairness and Public Service Act deployment rules.
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Judicial review — amenability of executive actions; administrative justice — s43 right to lawful and procedurally fair administrative action and reasons; ultra vires and Wednesbury unreasonableness — Public Service Act (s10) deployment requirements; separation of powers — High Court jurisdiction under s108(2); duty of candour in judicial review.
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12 February 2026 |
| January 2026 |
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High Court remitted a medical disciplinary case for fresh inquiry due to an incomplete and inadequate record.
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Medical disciplinary proceedings — statutory requirement to record proceedings and reasons (s48(5) Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act) — incomplete/inconsistent record — adequacy of minutes vs verbatim record — appellate review limited by deficient record — referral for fresh inquiry — issues of informed consent, negligence and gross incompetence considered but not determined on merits.
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29 January 2026 |
| December 2025 |
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The claimant’s late-registered lease was void; earlier registered lease prevails and the trespass claim is dismissed.
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Deeds Registration Act — mandatory registration period; late registration renders instrument void — priority of registration under s.8
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Trespass — possessory tort; possession ordinarily sufficient but yields to superior registered title. Nemo dat quod non habet — unregistered surrender ineffective; re-grant by minister invalid if prior lease subsists. Res judicata — default judicial review judgment not a merits-based bar; identity of parties and merits required
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Limitation — bars affirmative claims but does not preclude defendants relying on historical title defensively
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Relief — interlocutory injunction vacated; court-directed survey to demarcate customary land boundaries
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30 December 2025 |
| November 2025 |
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Post-declaration election petitions proceed under Section 101; technical defects in verification are curable and not necessarily fatal.
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Election law — Procedure — Distinction between Sections 100 and 101 PPLGEA — Post-declaration petitions proceed under Section 101 — Verifying sworn statements and exhibits — Procedural defects curable under CPR, 2017 — Judicial review not mandatory for factual election disputes.
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7 November 2025 |
| September 2025 |
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Leave for judicial review dismissed for deficient drafting, but applicant granted liberty to refile with notice to respondent.
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Judicial review — leave to apply — procedural and drafting deficiencies (typos, wrong citations, unclear arguments) — Order 19 CPR — dismissal with liberty to refile — notice to respondent.
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22 September 2025 |
| January 2025 |
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Claim dismissed with costs for failure to comply with trial directions and an incompetent adjournment request.
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Adjournment applications — competence and supporting evidence; failure to comply with trial directions; failure to prosecute; court’s discretion to grant adjournments; dismissal with costs.
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29 January 2025 |
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12 January 2025 |
| October 2024 |
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Summary judgment refused because disputed facts and legal issues exist on premises owner status and dog-handler negligence.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment — Order 12 CPR — Realistic vs fanciful prospects; Premises liability — vicarious/statutory owner under Control and Diseases of Animals Act; Negligence of dog handler — triable issue; Failure to plead/support failure-to-warn allegation; Judgment on admission — requirements for written admissions.
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31 October 2024 |
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30 October 2024 |
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A summons signed by a firm rather than a named legal practitioner is a nullity and must be struck out.
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Civil procedure — signature requirements for originating processes — Order 5 r3 & Order 7 r1(h) CPR; Legal Education and Legal Practitioners Act — definition of 'legal practitioner' as natural person on the Roll; firm name not a legal practitioner; originating process signed by firm is nullity and incurable.
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11 October 2024 |
| August 2024 |
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Court set aside party executive’s candidate‑eligibility rules as ultra vires and violative of members’ constitutional political rights.
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Constitutional and party law — justiciability of intra‑party disputes — locus standi of party member — ultra vires acts by party executive — limitation of members’ political rights — Section 40 Constitution — Political Parties Act compliance.
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6 August 2024 |
| July 2024 |
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Applicant proved false imprisonment and defamation by the retailer and assault by police, entitling her to damages.
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False imprisonment; assault and battery; defamation; shop detention; police misconduct; damages; civil burden and balance of probabilities.
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16 July 2024 |
| April 2024 |
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Whether claimant proved title to the plot and whether the purchaser was a bona fide purchaser without notice.
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Property law — proof of title: municipal offer/receipt and council confirmation as evidence; nemo dat principle; bona fide purchaser for value without notice — duty of due diligence and requirements; authentication of registry extracts and secondary documents.
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24 April 2024 |
| March 2024 |
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Court revoked bail and ordered forfeiture of cash bond and a bonded residential house after respondent absconded.
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Criminal procedure — Forfeiture of bonded money or property under section 121(2) — Absconding depositor — Identification of third‑party/matrimonial rights — Registered ownership as basis for forfeiture.
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28 March 2024 |
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A statutory corporation/local council is not automatically exempt from enforcement under Order 34 rule 4 absent express statutory coverage.
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Civil procedure — Order 34 r.4 CPR 2017 — exemption from enforcement; Suits by or against the Government — Civil Procedure (Suits by or against the Government or Public Officers) Act; General Interpretation Act — definition of Government; Statutory corporations and Crown immunities; Third-party debt order — stay application dismissed.
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6 March 2024 |
| December 2023 |
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Regulator acted ultra vires by treating subscription-management provider as a tariff-setting broadcaster; committee hearing was procedurally fair.
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Communications law — Tariff regulation (s.74(1)) — Distinction between subscription broadcasting and subscription management services — Scope of licence — Ultra vires review — Delegation to committees (s.15) — Procedural fairness of regulatory enforcement hearing.
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1 December 2023 |
| July 2023 |
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10 July 2023 |
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Assessment of wrongful-death damages: valuation of loss of expectation of life and dependency with inadequate income evidence.
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Wrongful death — Assessment of damages — Loss of expectation of life — Loss of dependency — Multiplicand and multiplier method — Use of minimum wage where income evidence lacking — Special damages and costs.
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4 July 2023 |
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Applicant’s rush to appellate court was premature; lower court’s decision to hear matter inter partes was within its CPR case-management discretion.
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Administrative law — judicial review — leave to apply and interim injunction — ex parte v inter partes hearings — case management discretion under CPR — balance of convenience and public interest in stays of administrative decisions.
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4 July 2023 |
| June 2023 |
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Assessment of damages for retained surgical pack causing prolonged injury; infertility claim not established by medical evidence.
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Medical negligence — retained surgical pack after caesarean — prolonged infection and multiple surgeries — assessment of quantum for pain and suffering, loss of amenities and disfigurement — inability to prove infertility without medical evidence — ex parte assessment after strike‑out of defence — reliance on comparable precedents and consideration of currency devaluation.
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28 June 2023 |
| March 2023 |
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Assessment of damages for two accident victims: awards for general damages, nominal future loss due to insufficient income proof.
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Damages — Personal injury; assessment of quantum for pain and suffering, loss of amenities and disfigurement; loss of earnings and earning capacity — proof of pre-accident income and use of multiplicand/multiplier — nominal awards where income evidence lacking.
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31 March 2023 |
| February 2023 |
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First offenders convicted of misuse of public office and influence received three-year sentences suspended for two years due to no loss and mitigating factors.
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Corruption offences — Misuse of public office (section 25B(1)) — Influencing public officer (section 25(2)) — Sentencing: breach of trust, planning, no actual loss, first offenders — Suspension of sentence under sections 339 and 340 Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code.
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27 February 2023 |
| January 2023 |
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Application for stay under Order 28 r48 was procedurally incompetent absent an existing enforcement order; applicant given leave to refile.
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Civil procedure — Stay of execution pending appeal — Order 28 rule 48 requires an existing enforcement order — prerequisites for stay: serious issue, inadequate damages, status quo, relative strength of case — procedural competence.
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27 January 2023 |
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Permission to seek judicial review denied where applicant failed to establish an arguable case or show ownership of impounded timber.
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Administrative law — Judicial review — Leave to apply for judicial review — Applicant must show an arguable case; insufficient, inconsistent documentary evidence; section 42(2)(b) inapplicable where applicant was not arrested.
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18 January 2023 |
| November 2022 |
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The court refused the applicant's interlocutory injunction, preserving the respondent's possession pending final determination.
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Interlocutory injunctions — land disputes — adequacy of damages — status quo — balance of convenience — delay and long-standing possession.
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24 November 2022 |
| October 2022 |
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A properly executed release discharges further claims and estops the releasor unless set aside for fraud or misrepresentation.
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Civil procedure — Release and Discharge Agreement — Binding effect of a properly executed release — Estoppel by release — Relief to set aside a release requires strong evidence of fraud, misrepresentation or mutual mistake; illiteracy or private negotiations without counsel insufficient without clear proof.
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25 October 2022 |
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The claimant failed to prove a grant from the prior owner; claim for possession dismissed for insufficient evidence.
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Property — proof of grant — documentary and oral contradictions; evidentiary weight of survey plans; burden and standard of proof in civil land disputes; failure to produce original documents and corroborating witnesses; claim for summary possession dismissed.
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3 October 2022 |
| August 2022 |
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Renewal of restriction notice upheld: "show cause" requires cogent reasons, not prima facie proof.
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Corrupt Practices Act s.23(3) — renewal of restriction notice — meaning of "show cause" — standard: cogent reasons/sufficient information to justify reasonable belief rather than prima facie proof — mootness of appeals — allegations of judicial bias require concrete evidence.
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16 August 2022 |
| July 2022 |
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Leave denied: claimant’s judicial review was premature for failing to exhaust licence arbitration and internal remedies.
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Administrative law — Judicial review — Leave required; alternative remedies/arbitration under licence; Communications Act s74 (tariff regulation) and clause 11.2 (prior approval) — Preliminary findings and procedural fairness — Ultra vires challenge to regulatory inquiry.
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25 July 2022 |
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Assessment of personal injury damages reduced for evidentiary discrepancies and subject to agreed contributory negligence.
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Assessment of damages — personal injury — pain and suffering, loss of amenities, disfigurement — reliance on comparable local awards — effect of contributory negligence and inconsistencies in pleadings/evidence on quantum.
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7 July 2022 |
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Unchallenged invoices proved special damages; court awarded hiring and repair costs after default judgment.
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Assessment of damages — special damages — strict proof required — unchallenged invoices and quotations sufficient to establish quantum — award for hiring and repair costs following default judgment.
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7 July 2022 |
| June 2022 |
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Taxation on the standard basis; instruction fee partly allowed, brief fees disallowed, total taxed costs MK30,421,125.
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Costs taxation — standard basis assessment — counsel hourly rate — instruction fee allowed; brief fees disallowed — reduction of excessive hours and disbursements — care and conduct uplift.
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29 June 2022 |
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Court awarded MK4,810,000 for proven injuries, rejecting unproven traumatic brain injury and unsubstantiated business income.
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Road traffic accident — quantum of damages — pain and suffering, loss of amenities, disfigurement — loss of earnings and earning capacity — proof of traumatic brain injury and business income — reliance on comparable awards.
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23 June 2022 |
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Assessment of personal injury damages after default judgment: court awards MK12,000,000 for pain, disfigurement and 28% incapacity.
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Personal injury — assessment of damages — pain and suffering, loss of amenities, disfigurement — permanent incapacitation assessed at 28% — use of comparable awards — default judgment — quantum and costs.
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23 June 2022 |
| May 2022 |
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Abuse of public office and armed intimidation in a traffic dispute justified aggravated and exemplary awards for assault and false imprisonment.
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Tort — assault and false imprisonment; assessment of damages; aggravated and exemplary (punitive) damages; abuse of public office by security officer; use of firearm as aggravating factor; mitigation for claimant’s conduct.
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10 May 2022 |
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A presidential security officer’s abusive conduct warranted compensatory, aggravated and exemplary damages totaling MK10,000,000.
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Tort — assault and false imprisonment; assessment of damages; aggravated and exemplary/punitive damages; abuse of public office by security officer; mitigation; combined‑issue approach to quantum.
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10 May 2022 |
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9 May 2022 |
| March 2022 |
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An added party cannot invoke non-party rule to vary a consent order; the proper remedy is appeal or action, application dismissed.
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Civil procedure — Consent order — Setting aside or variation — Order 23(8) CPR (non-party relief) inapplicable to persons who are parties; aggrieved party should appeal or commence specific action.
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28 March 2022 |
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Summary judgment dismissed where respondent raised arguable defence and relevant factual and legal disputes over alleged unfair dismissal.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment — Order 12 r23 and r26 — defendant must have no real prospect of defence and no relevant dispute of fact or law; Labour law — unfair dismissal — Employment Act s57 — forum conveniens — Industrial Relations Court.
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23 March 2022 |
| February 2022 |
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A bare general-denial defence failing to address material facts may be struck out under Order 7 CPR 2017.
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Civil procedure — Strike out of defence — Order 7 Rules 6 & 7 CPR 2017 — Bare/general denial and holding defences — Requirement to state material facts and alternative account — Delay and failure to seek leave to amend — Judgment entered.
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24 February 2022 |
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8 February 2022 |
| January 2022 |
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Applicant awarded K2,003,000 for pain, suffering and loss of amenities after tricycle accident caused by insurer's insured negligence.
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Personal injury — Assessment of damages after default judgment — Liability of insurer for tricycle driver — Pain and suffering and loss of amenities — Proof of special damages (police/medical reports) — Party and party costs.
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13 January 2022 |
| December 2021 |
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Court upheld permission for judicial review and continued interim injunction, finding triable questions on jurisdiction and bias.
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Judicial review — permission stage (arguable case) — Ombudsman powers under s123(1)-(2) — jurisdictional limits versus alternative remedies — apparent bias/conflict of interest — interlocutory reliefs to preserve status quo pending review.
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27 December 2021 |
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A regulator’s recall order issued without hearing the applicant breached natural justice and was quashed; costs awarded against the respondent.
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Administrative law — natural justice — right to be heard — recall and re-export of imported goods — Malawi Bureau of Standards Act (market surveillance, section 30 and section 35) — procedural fairness — result of re-testing deemed to apply to whole batch (section 35(3)) — decision void for breach of natural justice.
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9 December 2021 |
| November 2021 |
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A default judgment on non-monetary claims was set aside; subordinate court must hear the parties.
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Courts Act s26 — supervisory/revisionary jurisdiction; Subordinate Court Rules Order XIX — default judgments; Default judgment only for specified monetary claims; Inadvertent default judgment set aside and matter remitted for hearing.
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15 November 2021 |
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Application for interlocutory injunction dismissed: traders on a road reserve have no serious claim and damages or relocation suffice.
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Interlocutory injunction — test (serious question, adequacy of damages, justice) — occupation on road reserve — temporary permission to trade — alternative relocation provided — Public Roads Act/compensation issues — balance of convenience and public interest.
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1 November 2021 |